Thread protector



Re.21,394l

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INV TOR.

A T TORNE Y Reuued Mai'. l2, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFlcE I No. 127,698, February 25, 1937.

Application for reissue July 21, 1939, Serial No. 285,731

3 Claims.

This invention relates to thread protectors.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a thread protector formed of rubber or `other resilient material, adapted to be placed on the threaded ends oi pipes or tubes and within the threaded couplings on pipes or tubes.

A further object of this invention is to. provide a thread protector oi' rubber or other resilient material so designed as to hold itself firmly upon the threads being protected once it has been placed in position.

A still further object of this invention is to providea' thread protector formed of rubber or other resilient material and designed to protect the ends of the tubes or coupling and permit the tube and coupling to be tested without the use oi' any additional gaskets or packing positioned in or on the lace plate of the testing apparatus.

'This thread protector has been designed for a dual purpose, that of protecting the threads during handling and that of providing a suitable gasket effect when the tube is being hydraulically tested. Prior to the adoption of this protector it has been necessary in the testing oi tubes to place them between a pair of oppositely disposed face plates having circular grooves therein of thesame size as the pipe being tested. These grooves are usually packed with hemp or other gasket material to i'orm a tight joint. A great deal of time is wasted due to the necessity o1' repeatedly repacking these grooves to insure an accurate test, and additional time is Wasted i1'. changing the face plates at such times as various sises of tubes are to be tested. In using my invention it is possible to eliminate this, waste of time entirely as the face plates used have a continuously smooth surface and readily accommodate any size of tube while the thread protector itself forms the necessary gasket for a tight testing connection.

Under some'conditions it may be desirable to more adequately protect the threads and therefore this thread protector of rubber or other resilient material has been designed to permit the use of a secondary metal cup-shaped casing, such as is shown in my co-pending application on (cl. 13s- 96) struction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed can be made within the scope of what 4is claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein- Figure 1 is a side elevation, with parts in cross section of a thread protector adapted for use on the outer threaded end of a tube, and

Figure 2 is a side elevation, with -parts in cross section o1' a thread protector adapted for use on the inner threaded end of a coupling.

By referring to Figure 1 of the drawing it will be seenthat I have provided a thread protector I formed preferably oi rubber, and having U- shaped end sections 2 formed so as to fit tightly over the end 3 of a tube 4. The outer side wall of this thread protector I is'tormed with a continuous convex ridge 5 thereon, while the inner wall is formed with a continuous matching slightly concave depression l. The convex ridge 5 and concave depression 6 are formed in the side wall of thethread protector i'or the purpose of providing eiilcient friction contact with any me.- tallic cup-shaped casing that might be placed thereon for additional protection,

By referring to the construction of the U- shaped end portion 2 of the thread protector I it will be apparent that the tapered inner wall l insures suiilcient body at this point to adequately protect the tapered` end of the tube 4, and in conjunction with the up-turned portion 8 of the U-'shaped end portion 2, will provide adequate body to form an eillcient continuous gasket over the end of the tube for testing pur- By referring to Figure 2 it will be seen that a modified form of my invention provides for the yadequate protection of the inner threaded ends of a coupling 9. A thread protector I0 has a ridge portion I I formed at its inner end adapted to secure any metallic cup-shaped casing that may be inserted therein, and has a tapered outer portion I2 to protect the tapered end of the coupling. An outer U-shaped portion I3 together with this tapered outer portion I2 provides sufiicient body toI insure an eiiicient continuous gasket around the end oi the coupling for testing purposes. It is obvious that this protector may be also used on the threaded inner ends of pipes or tubes and similar objects, as it will be just as practical inthat use as it is on the coupling.

What I claim is:

1. A thread protector formed of resilient material and adapted to cover the internal threads of the outer end of a coupling, a. ridge portion vformed at its inner end adapted to secure a metallip cup shapedcasing that may be inserted therein, together withl a. U-shaped end section designed to fit snugly over the end of a coupling forming a protective covering and suitable flat faced testing gasket.

2.`A thread protector formed of resilient material and adapted to lcover the internal 'threads of the outer end of a coupling, aridge portion formed at its inner end adapted to secure a metallic cup shaped casing that may be inserted therein, together with a U-shaped end section coms1,so4

prism;v a. tapered section' of the side wsu and an outer and up-turned portion designed to t snugly over the end of a. coupling forming a pro-1 tective. covering and suitable fiat faced testing gasket.

3. A thread protector formed of resilient ma.-A Yterilti and adapted to cover the internal threads of the outer end of a coupling; a ridge portion formed inwardly from its outward 'end adapted to secure a metallic cup shaped casing that. may be inserted therein.' ytogether witha U-kshaped end section designed to fit snugly over the end of a coupling forming a. protective covering and suitable at faced testing gasket.

y LEROY H. Lm. 

